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Has The Poincare Conjecture Been Solved?
Zack Coburn writes "An article in the Boston Globe alludes to the Poincare Conjecture being solved, possibly. For those who are unfamiliar with the conjecture, the article gives a brief description: "To solve it, one would have to prove something that no one seriously doubts: that, just as there is only one way to bend a two-dimensional plane into a shape without holes -- the sphere -- there is likewise only one way to bend three-dimensional space into a shape that has no holes. Though abstract, the conjecture has powerful practical implications: Solve it and you may be able to describe the shape of the universe." Apparently Grigory Perelman may have proved it, which would mean a $1 million award from the Clay Mathematics Institute." We've previously discussed other possible Poincare proofs.
welcome our new topological overlord.
Let me guess.. he says that the new topological object is universe-shaped?
Karma: SELECT `karma` FROM `users` WHERE `userid`=138474;
Yes but Godel showed that you never do it completely.
> In 2002, I researched the COSMIC background
Yeah, lots of people do that in college... Usually with the help of LSD and stuff.
Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
"(First off, remember that us MATHEMATICANS DO IT SMOOTHLY AND CONTINUOUSLY.)"
They also DO IT with GRATUITOUS USE of CAPITAL LETTERS! Lay off the shift key!
Man, who let Shatner have the keyboard?
I'm so drunk I can't s up strait and we're asking if some mathematical conjecture has been proved? Is this really the right storey for New Years Eve? Lets go with stories about things that are bright and shiny.
I do security
What's really important is that this proof was put out by a reclusive Russian mathematician. That pretty much clinches it.
Pure mathematicians don't do it, they leave it as an exercise to the reader.
Applied mathematicians do it with a real-world model.